Dear Isaac and Maia,

There is nothing more exciting than the beginning of a road trip through Southeastern Utah. I cannot say that Green River is an exciting start to the day, but ahead lie the Goblins. And, the Goblins are the guards of the gateway to Iconic Utah via Highways 24 and 12.

Remember yesterday when I said Kachina wasn’t feeling great? She seemed to be perking up and ate breakfast. So, I decided it was car sickness. And, off we went down on I-70 towards South Utah Highway 24. Highway 24 is also called the Capitol Reef Scenic Byway and is known for its alien goblins.

I was only a few miles down the road when my phone started beeping incessantly. I keep the sound off on the phone so it took me by surprise as I drove towards our Highway 24 turnoff and the San Rafael Swell. It was a warning not to enter slot canyons as they fill with water during rainstorms. I ended up getting 4 of these alerts total on the trip. I knew I was in Southeastern Utah! I don’t do slots, but I knew it meant a monsoon was building in the area.

We headed down Highway 24 and overshot the Goblin Valley State Park entrance to get a burger in Hanksville, UT. It is tradition – we go to Stan’s Burger Shak. The girls waited on the porch while I grabbed the food. I didn’t share much with them because I was still concerned about Kachina’s tummy. I was glad for the energy boost that would power me through an afternoon. It’s a fun place if you get to Hanksville.

Then, off to set-up camp amongst the Goblins. It was the site we had last time, so I knew what to expect. It was warm but there are nice shelters at each site where the dogs could rest. After camp was set-up, I sat and waited for the heat to pass. I could see the storm growing in the distance, but my Garmin InReach satellite communicator said no rain predicted. (There is no cell service at Goblin so I use my InReach to communicate with the outside world.)

I fed the dogs and, unfortunately, Kachina would not eat a bite. This is not like her. My concern is growing because she just isn’t acting like herself. I made dinner for myself while my mind processed what to do about a sick dog when we were 150 miles from an ER vet on Saturday night.

I decided the best thing was to plan to head back in the morning. But, Kachina wasn’t deathly ill, I was just worried about her getting worse. So, I drove from the campground over to see Goblin Valley. We stayed at the lookout area because Kachina was so low-energy. I got a few photos and the wind from the nearby monsoon gusted. I bet we were there less than 15 minutes when I decided to head back and make plans to get Kachina to the vet the next day.

The Garmin communicator was great. My daughter (your mom) helped me verify info on vet office hours for the next day. She even helped me check-in the next morning – all with no cell service. I have only used the device for non-urgent check-ins. I was impressed how much it helped to be able to text and get more information.

Then, it was time to go to bed because I planned to be up at dawn. I wrestled with the choice of driving 150 miles back to Grand Junction to Animal ER of the Western Slope and then back to Capitol Reef for the next night. That’s 350 miles total with a vet visit in the middle and monsoons looming. What should I do??? It would depend on what the vet found. I will decide tomorrow.

TTFN, Grandma Cathy H